1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wireless communication terminal that, after performing authentication at a data link level with a terminal capable of performing wireless communication with its surrounding area, performs data communication with that wireless communication-capable terminal.
Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2010-243884, filed Oct. 29, 2010, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference:
2. Description of the Related Art
All patents, patent applications, patent publications, scientific articles, and the like, which will hereinafter be cited or identified in the present application, will hereby be incorporated by reference in their entirety in order to describe more fully the state of the art to which the present invention pertains.
In a wireless LAN, when a wireless communication terminal is performing data communication within a network, it firstly participates in that network, and then performs authentication processing at the data link level with the wireless communication terminal which is going to be its direct communication partner, resulting in an encryption key being distributed. As a result, data communication between that wireless communication terminal and the communication partner wireless communication terminal is enabled.
In the case of infrastructure mode, the direct communication partner is an access point (abbreviated below to AP). When a wireless communication terminal receives a Beacon which is transmitted at regular intervals by an AP and announces the presence of the AP, Or when it receives a Probe Response, which is a response from an AP to a Probe Request, namely, to a request to acquire network information which was transmitted to the AP by that wireless communication terminal itself, then the wireless communication terminal detects the network created by the AP.
A Beacon or Probe Response includes SSID, which is network identification information, and information relating to the encryption and authentication types. A wireless communication terminal decides to participate in a network in accordance with the SSID and information relating to the encryption and authentication types. For example, if a plurality of networks are detected, then by selecting a specific SSID from among the SSID of this plurality of networks, a user can decide to participate in that network. In addition, a user can also decide not to participate in an open network that has not been authenticated.
When the Wireless communication terminal has been decided to participate in a network, the wireless communication terminal is placed in a state of participation as a result of its own TSF (timing synchronization function) timer being synchronized with the value of the TSF timer of the AP contained in the received Beacon or Probe Response. The wireless communication terminal which is in a state of participation attempts to perform authentication processing at a data link level with the AP, and if this authentication processing is successful, the wireless communication terminal is able to communicate via the AP with other wireless communication terminals that have already completed authentication processing with that AP.
In contrast, in the case of ad hoc mode, an AP is not required and other wireless communication terminals become direct communication partners. In this case, when a wireless communication terminal detects a network created by another wireless communication terminal, then in the same process as when it detects a network created by an AP, the wireless communication terminal enters a state of participation in that network. Generally, authentication processing operation of this type is performed.
In order for a particular wireless communication terminal to participate in a network and complete authentication processing, it is necessary to set up a variety of information (i.e., network setting information) in the wireless communication terminal such as the network ID (SSID), the authentication type, the encryption type, and the encryption key. This has generally required operating input from a user on the wireless communication terminal. Because this operating input is complex, performing the setup operation has proved difficult, particularly for users who are unfamiliar with wireless LAN technology. In contrast, Wi-Fi Protected Setup (TM) Specification 1.0 (referred to below as WPS) has been disclosed as a wireless LAN industry-wide standard technology that allows this setup to be performed simply and enables a wireless communication terminal to participate in an infrastructure network.
In WPS, for example, as a result of a user pressing buttons in both an AP and a wireless communication terminal, or alternatively, as a result of a user entering a PIN code displayed on one of the AP and the wireless communication terminal into the other one thereof, the network setting information held by the AP can be safely transferred to the wireless communication terminal. After the delivery of the various information by WPS has ended, the wireless communication terminal completes the authentication processing between itself and the AP based on the delivered information, and is able to perform data communication with the AP.
In the case of the ad hoc mode, a wireless communication terminal that is starting a new participation in a network (abbreviated below to ‘new wireless communication terminal’) performs authentication processing with all of the existing wireless communication terminals within the network. As a consequence, even if a new wireless communication terminal intends to communicate solely with a specific wireless communication terminal within the network, and does not wish to communicate with wireless communication terminals other than that specific terminal, authentication is established at the data link level between the new wireless communication terminal and all of the existing wireless communication terminals within the network, and data communication between these is enabled. For example, a case might be considered in which a printer and PC are present, in an existing ad hoc network, and a user who owns a digital still camera (abbreviated below to DSC) participates in this ad hoc network with the aim of printing on the printer an image stored on the DSC. In this case, the fact that data communication between the DSC and the PC is now possible means that there is a possibility of unnecessary data communication occurring, and this may cause problems from the standpoint of network resources. Furthermore, if the user of the DSC is not an acquaintance of the user of the PC, then problems may also occur from the standpoints of security and privacy.
Moreover, if a case in which a WPS is expanded to ad hoc mode is considered, then when a user is implementing WPS by pressing buttons on both a wireless communication terminal that is participating in an ad hoc network and a new wireless communication terminal, the intention of the user to perform data communication between the devices whose buttons have been pressed is obvious. However, for the user of a new wireless communication terminal, the fact that they may now also perform data communication with other wireless communication terminals may give rise to the problems described above. Because of this, it is desirable for a new wireless communication terminal to perform authentication processing at the data link level with only a limited number of the wireless communication terminals existing within a network, and to then perform data communication.